Psychology faculty member receives Caterpillar honor

11/08/2011 3:12 PM

By Brigitte Graf ’13

Assistant Professor of Psychology Stephenie Chaudoir has been granted the Caterpillar Faculty Achievement Award for Scholarship. The award is Caterpillar’s way of recognizing new faculty members at Bradley for scholarly achievements.

While the award recognizes success in the classroom, it also places merit on the honoree’s accomplishments in professional scholarship. Chaudoir currently has 11 publications, including six published articles in peer-reviewed journals, one chapter in an edited book and four in press.

“Many prolific and innovative scholars have received this award before me and I am honored to be recognized among them,” said Chaudoir.

Chaudoir’s research on HIV stigma has played a key role in gaining her this recognition. Throughout her research she has collaborated with researchers in South Africa to make great strides in developing prevention and treatment efforts.

“I hope that my research can help contribute to solutions designed to address this important human rights and public health issue,” said Chaudoir.

Chaudoir makes it a point to include students in her research.

“In my short time at Bradley, a handful of students have traveled with me to regional and national conferences to present our work, and this type of active student-faculty collaboration is a hallmark of the psychology program and my department’s goals for research excellence,” Chaudoir said.

The research Chaudoir and her peers perform is geared, like the majority of Caterpillar’s efforts and projects, to finding solutions to issues which affect and help people on a global scale.

“Like Caterpillar, I hope that my work helps to develop new solutions to emergent global challenges and opportunities,” Chaudoir said. “I would like to think that, in some small way, my research aspires to utilize innovative ideas and practices to connect across borders.”